Lead book review
War damage to mind and body
Emma Williams salutes two books that examine close up the physical and psychological scars of war
Man and horse - the end of a special relationship?
Sam Leith canters through a fascinating, if eccentric, history of man’s long partnership with the horse
Cash for coronets: the invasion of America’s social-climbing heiresses
The undignified ‘cash for coronets’ deal between America’s heiresses and Europe’s nobility produced some marvellous stories, says Nicholas Shakespeare
Will most seabirds be extinct by the end of the century?
Wherever seabirds are at home, so too is Adam Nicolson – and his understanding of them is almost uncanny, says Maggie Fergusson
Hans Sloane collected everything – from acupuncture kits to zebras
Hans Sloane’s passion for collecting led to the foundation = of the British Museum. But missing – until now – has been the man himself, says Jonathan Keates
Whatever happens next, Havana will always be Havana
With more than a million visitors every year, Havana is now a fabulous, half-derelict human zoo, says John Gimlette
London’s gay past will always be a mystery
It needs guesswork and intuition to write a history of gay London – because for centuries no one was talking, says Philip Hensher
Racing to Armageddon
An enduring solution to war becomes ever more pressing. But will it always be wishful thinking, as Milos Stankovic suspects?
From Tree of Death to Tree of Life: the history of the cross
Among Christians, the cross is seen as an instrument of execution and an emblem of victory. Christopher Howse explores the paradox
Darkness visible – the wondrous power of eclipses
Marek Kukula was surprised to find himself moved to tears when he first witnessed a solar eclipse
Leonora Carrington’s adventures in surrealism
The surrealists’ muse and a distinguished artist in her own right, Leonora Carrington captivated all who met her, says Jane Rye
The tragedy of a brother’s drowning
Nicholas Shakespeare is full of admiration for Richard Beard’s painful inquest into the death of his brother
David Jones – the 20th century’s great neglected genius
When Stravinsky visited David Jones in his cold Harrow bedsit, he came away saying, ‘I have been in the presence…
How Lenin manipulated the Russian Revolution to his own ends
With the old order rotten to the core, Russia was more than ripe for revolution in 1917. But Lenin thought the revolution was all about him, says Roland Elliott Brown
Who — or what — is the African, the Stranger and the One-eyed Sphinx?
Since childhood, Caroline Moore has been captivated by the fragile, silky, shimmering beauty of moths — and by their enchanting names
How Jane Carlyle survived a miserable marriage
Jane Carlyle found comfort in her miserable marriage by ‘splashing off’ whatever was on her mind in letters to friends – which became famous in her own lifetime, says Frances Wilson
Could the Rorschach tests spot a Nazi?
There may be something in the Rorschach tests, says Philip Hensher, but can it really be measured?
The long tragedy of Europe's borderland
The border between Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey has long been a flashpoint. Now, more than ever, says Simon Kuper, it’s a hazardous transit realm for the homeless
The importance of being frivolous
Sam Leith is delighted by the idea that having fun is the key to human progress
Cheating death by time travel
The concept of time travel is surprisingly recent, says Jenny Colgan. Before H.G. Wells, it barely existed
Eating people is rare (and very unhealthy)
The subject has been popularised from Homer to the Brothers Grimm, but, mercifully, human cannibalism has always been rare, says Philip Hensher
A singular horror
How did the Holocaust happen? What lessons can be learned from it? Philippe Sands wonders whether anything similar could happen again
Why is the world crumbling in anger and terror?
America’s global hegemony from 1944 onwards has led to a world now riven by hatred and terror, says Jonathan Steinberg
The Harvard housewives who measured the heavens
Marek Kukula tells how, in the late 19th century, Harvard Observatory began to rely on a number of women – ranging from graduates to housemaids – to analyse an explosion of scientific data
Women writers who deserve to be forgotten
When resurrecting forgotten writers of the past, make sure they’re not neglected for good reason, says Philip Hensher
![Nothing much happens, yet there is so much to watch: Alfonso Cuaron’s Roma. [Photograph: Carlos Somonte/Netflix]](https://spectator.imgix.net/content/uploads/2018/12/8Decfilm.jpg?auto=compress,enhance,format&crop=faces,entropy,edges&fit=crop&w=503&h=302)
